The Imperial German Army Between Kaiser and King

This book provides a reappraisal of Germany's military between the mid-nineteenth century and the end of the First World War. At its core is the following question: how 'German' was the imperial German army? This army, which emerged from the Wars of Unification in 1871, has commonly been seen as the 'school of the nation'. After all so this argument goes tens of thousands of young men passed through its ranks each year, with conscripts undergoing an intense program of patriotic education and returning to civilian life as fervent German nationalists and ardent supporters of the German emperor, or Kaiser. This book reexamines this assumption. It does not deny that devotion to the Fatherland and loyalty to the Kaiser were widespread among German soldiers in the decades following unification. It nevertheless shows that the imperial German army was far less homogenous and far more faction-ridden than has hitherto been acknowledged.

Presents an alternative to Prusso-centric histories of the German army that fought the First World War Adds to our understanding of the relationship between monarchs and their armies during the 'long' nineteenth century Shows that competing identities and dual loyalties were the rule, not the exception, within the imperial German army

Auteur
Gavin Wiens completed his PhD at the University of Toronto, Canada, where he teaches modern German and European history, world history, and the Holocaust.

Texte du rabat

This book provides a reappraisal of Germany s military between the mid-nineteenth century and the end of the First World War. At its core is the following question: how 'German' was the imperial German army? This army, which emerged from the Wars of Unification in 1871, has commonly been seen as the 'school of the nation'. After all so this argument goes tens of thousands of young men passed through its ranks each year, with conscripts undergoing an intense program of patriotic education and returning to civilian life as fervent German nationalists and ardent supporters of the German emperor, or Kaiser. This book reexamines this assumption. It does not deny that devotion to the Fatherland and loyalty to the Kaiser were widespread among German soldiers in the decades following unification. It nevertheless shows that the imperial German army was far less homogenous and far more faction-ridden than has hitherto been acknowledged.

Contenu

1. Introduction.- 2. Genesis.- 3. Military Federalism.- 4. The Need for Compromise.- 5. Warrior Princes.- 6. The Danger Within.- 7. Fighting Together but Apart. 8. Conclusion.